Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) is showcasing its key projects and innovative initiatives through its two stands at the Northern and Southern Complexes of the 23rd Water, Energy, Technology, and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) and Dubai Solar Show (DSS). DEWA is organising WETEX and DSS under the directives of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and the patronage of HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE) from 5 to 7 October 2021 at the Dubai Exhibition Centre, Expo 2020 Dubai.
HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA, Founder and Chairman of WETEX and DSS, said that the exhibition is held in conjunction with Expo 2020 Dubai, which provides an opportunity to showcase DEWA’s globally leading achievements for millions of visitors. It provides an ideal platform to enhance collaborations with DEWA and help it develop its business in the MENA region.
DEWA is showcasing the following projects and initiatives:
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park
DEWA is showcasing a model of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world with a planned capacity of 5,000 megawatts (MW) in 2030. HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has recently inaugurated the first stage of the Solar Park’s fifth phase, increasing DEWA’s total capacity from clean energy to 1,310 MW and the clean energy share in Dubai’s energy mix to 10%. DEWA’s electricity capacity has reached 13,200 MW of electricity and 490 million gallons of water per day (MIGD).
DEWA is also showcasing a model of the Innovation Centre at the Solar Park, which has consolidated its position as a global platform for promoting the future of sustainable energy. Moreover, DEWA highlights its R&D Centre at the Solar Park, which supports DEWA’s efforts in anticipating the future and developing proactive, long-term plans that keep pace with the Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies and disruptive technologies as well as provide world-class services that improve the quality of life in Dubai.
DEWA’s Space D-Programme
DEWA’s Space-D project includes the launch of a satellite constellation to support its primary satellite. These will be manufactured by Emiratis at the Research and Development (R&D) Centre of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. The system features a ground station at the solar park as well as IoT and AI technologies to support ground communication transmission stations in electricity and water networks. By deploying this infrastructure, DEWA seeks to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of its planning and operations, and enhance preventive maintenance at its production, transmission, distribution divisions as well as its smart grids, and electric vehicle charging stations.
Green Hydrogen project
DEWA’s stand presents a model for the green hydrogen project, a pioneering project implemented in collaboration between DEWA, Expo 2020 Dubai and Siemens Energy at the outdoor testing facilities of the Solar Park. It is the first project of its kind in the MENA region to produce hydrogen from solar power.
Pioneering projects in Hatta
DEWA is showcasing its pioneering projects in Hatta. These include the hydroelectric power plant, the first of its kind in the GCC to generate electricity using stored water in Hatta Dam. The station’s production capacity will reach 250 MW. It will have a storage capacity of 1,500 megawatt-hours. DEWA’s projects in Hatta also include Dubai Summit, and Hatta Sustainable Waterfalls. Dubai Summit includes the construction of a 5.4-kilometre cable car to transport tourists to the summit of Um Al Nesoor. At 1,300 metres above sea level, it is the highest natural summit in Dubai. Hatta Sustainable Waterfalls will use the slope of the upper dam to create a natural waterfall. A waterway will be built along the parking area below the dam. The water used in the waterfall will be collected at the end of the stream, recycled, and pumped back to the top of the dam. Moreover, DEWA will showcase Hatta Line and Cable, a strategic flagship project connecting the one-of-a-kind new Hatta Hydroelectric Plant to Dubai’s high voltage transmission grid through a combination of 132kV new and existing underground cables and overhead lines.
Net Zero Energy Buildings
DEWA will showcase its net-zero energy buildings, which received the Platinum Rating in the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Cities certification awarded by the US Green Building Council (USGBC). These include DEWA’s Sustainable Building, the first sustainable government building in the UAE and the largest government building in the world certified by LEED; Al-Shera’a (Arabic for sail) Building, DEWA’s new headquarters, which will be the tallest, largest, and smartest government Zero Energy building in the world; the Innovation Centre; R&D Centre; Smart Grids Station (SGS); Moro Hub (Data Hub Integrated Solutions LLC ) in Jebel Ali; and the Distribution Power Division Complex in Al Ruwayyah.
Solar Decathlon Middle East
DEWA is organising the second Solar Decathlon Middle East (SDME) to design solar-powered buildings in conjunction with Expo 2020 Dubai under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council as part of a partnership between DEWA, the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy (DSCE), and the US Department of Energy. DEWA organised the first SDME, the most competitive Decathlon among universities in 2018 for the first time in the Middle East and Africa.
Smart Grid Strategy
WETEX and DSS witnesses the launch of DEWA Smart Grid Strategy 2021-2035 and DEWA Smart Grid Report 2021. DEWA’s Smart Grid Strategy 2021 – 2035 includes six main themes: Foundational Capabilities; Grid Automation; Smart Energy Solutions and Green Mobility; Smart Water; Artificial Intelligence; and Innovative Value-Added Services. The Smart Grid Strategy themes comprise 19 smart grid capabilities.
Shams Dubai
The Shams Dubai initiative aims to encourage building owners to install solar photovoltaic panels to produce clean energy and connect it to DEWA’s grid.
Duroob smart app
Duroob is an Arabic name given for the Mobile GIS application developed specifically for field Staff to use Geographical Information System (GIS) data in their mobile devices to view, navigate, analyse, edit and capture the data from the site.
Smart Living initiative
The Smart Living initiative helps customers adopt a sustainable lifestyle, digitally and proactively monitor their water and electricity usage, and resolve any issues causing excessive waste without contacting DEWA.
EV Green Charger
The EV Green Charger initiative aims to provide EV charging stations across Dubai and promote sustainable mobility. This initiative has provided the first public infrastructure for EV chargers in the region. Customers can access DEWA’s green charger stations, which have reached more than 300 stations across Dubai, through DEWA’s website or mobile app.
Storing desalinated water in a subterranean basin
DEWA is building a subterranean water basin to store 6,000 million gallons of water that can be retrieved when needed. This will provide the Emirate with a strategic reserve of over 50 million gallons of water per day in emergencies, while ensuring the quality of the stored water remains unaffected by external factors.
Smart and innovative applications
DEWA is showcasing its key smart applications including the smart field app it uses GIS to guide field staff to view, navigate, analyse, and collect information from the field about over-ground and under-ground network assets, with 3D, offline and crew tracking capabilities. The platform also features Dropbox, a smart box with an application that serves homeowners and is used to drop any shipments at home without any human interaction. The application will send your home details to the carrier, including access code for Dropbox.
DEWA also has GIS Tools & Dashboards for Analysis and Decision Making, a portfolio of advanced GIS tools and dashboards that help in decision making and advanced analytics; Optimal Feeder Reconfiguration provides the best set of branches to be opened to reduce power losses and balance load. It also analyses the effort to optimise the distribution network. The platform also displays an advanced system to forecast PV panel production in the short term at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. The new system reduces errors in the forecast to less than 10%.
Shams station at the Solar Park
DEWA’s 400/132 kV substation ‘Shams’ at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park uses the latest digital technologies. It has a conversion capacity of 2020 megavolt-amperes (MVA) with 223 kilometres of 400kV overhead lines to connect with DEWA’s network.
Sandblasting Robotic Arm
The sand jet robotic arm cleans distribution equipment such as transformers and low volt switchboards, removing wear, dust and rust, and prepares it for painting and repair. The arm is environmentally friendly, easy to use and very precise, in addition to its role in reducing human time and risks.
Noor and Hayat and Green Pledge
Get to know Noor and Hayat, the two cartoon characters representing electricity and water, and their friends, the conservation heroes constantly striving to protect the environment and conserve energy resources and prevent waste. You can also learn about the “Green Pledge” initiative, through which individuals pledge to adopt positive behaviour contributing to the conservation of electricity and water consumption.
Conservation brochures
DEWA provides a set of conservation manuals targeting homeowners, guests and hotel management, and factories to educate them on best practices to conserve electricity and water and preserve natural resources.
Conservation savings
The Conservation Savings corner highlights savings achieved by DEWA. Conservation programmes and initiatives launched by DEWA have achieved cumulative savings of 2.6 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity and 8.5 billion gallons of water between 2009 and 2020. This is equivalent to saving AED 1.5 billion and reducing 1.136 million tonnes of carbon emissions.
‘Ideal Home’ initiative
DEWA launched the Ideal Home initiative in partnership with nine government entities to raise awareness among homeowners about the measures that must be taken to provide an ideal, happy and sustainable home environment. This is through applying the best standards of environmental sustainability, health and safety, security, smart transformation and social responsibility.
SOQOOR Programme
SOQOOR Programme evaluates the performance of Consultants and Contractors who work with DEWA based on the quality of their applications’ submission and site operations. The best performing consultants and contractors on various project categories receive the SOQOOR Programme recognition and award.
DEWA Subsidiaries
DEWA also allocates sufficient space to present the projects and initiatives of its subsidiaries, including Digital DEWA, the digital arm of DEWA which aims to redefine the concept of a utility to create a new digital future for Dubai. DEWA also highlights the projects of Data Hub Integrated Solutions (Moro), wholly-owned by DEWA; Infra X, a DEWA subsidiary within Digital DEWA, ‘Digital X,’ also one of Digital DEWA companies; and Mai Dubai, the bottled drinking water company, wholly-owned by DEWA.